Territorial claims in the Arctic

The political status of the Arctic is still unclear.

According to the Law of the Sea ( UNCLOS ) of the 1982 United Nations states with oceanic coast the right to limit the control of the water surface up to a distance of 200 nautical miles (nm ) ( ~ 370 km ) from the main coastline (so-called Exclusive Economic Zone ). This means that the five countries bordering the Arctic Ocean with area may raise territorial claims over parts of the Arctic Ocean north of the Arctic Circle, Norway, Denmark, Russia, the USA and Canada.

The (geographic ) north and the of 300 km surrounding it up to a distance field but are so far away from the mainland that they are not in possession of a state under current law. However, each state has the opportunity to request within ten years after the ratification of UNCLOS, under certain conditions, to extend its control on the continental shelf and thus to more than 200 nautical miles from the mainland.

Because of this scheme applied previously Norway ( ratified UNCLOS 1996), Russia (1997 ), Canada ( 2003) and Denmark ( 2004), such an extension of their territory. In addition, there are primarily in Canadian and Russian politics and jurisprudence voices that keep the UNCLOS inapplicable in the Arctic and instead propose a so-called " sector " solution.

Ownership question

Situation in the 20th century

1925 Advanced Canada was the first country towards its limits north to the pole. The claim to the maritime sector between 60 ° f. L. and 141 ° w. L. was not recognized internationally ( the shortest distance between Canadian country and the North Pole is just under 770 km ). However, other states followed the Canadian example and claimed each specific sectors of the Arctic Ocean itself (analogous to the 'sharing' of Antarctica ): (. L. 35 ° ö w to 170 ° L.) Russia, Norway (5 ° ö L. ° to 35 ° ö L. ) and the USA (170 ° w. L. to 141 ° w. L.), but their sector contained only a few islands, and therefore the sovereignty was not claimed emphatically. After the recognition of the sovereignty of Denmark on total Greenland by the United States in 1916 and by the Permanent Court of International Justice in 1933 Denmark was also the Arctic sector between 60 ° f. L. and 10 ° w. L. claim for themselves.

On April 15, 1926, the area between 35 ° and 170 ° ö L. was w. L. determined by a decision of the All-Russian Congress of Soviets as belonging to the Soviet Union. This corresponds to a triangle between Murmansk, the Arctic and the Chukchi Peninsula and thus a large part of the Arctic Ocean.

In the 1950s, in the context of the Cold War, the Canadian government sent in the context of resettlement ( High Arctic relocation ), Inuit families in the far north, partly to territorial claims to begründen.Zusätzlich rises Canada claim to the water in the Canadian- Arctic archipelago as inland waters.

A binding international decision on the affected area, there was never, however. The North Pole itself, and the largest part of the Arctic Ocean were considered by the year 1999 by those states that refused sector classification as international waters. At the end of the 20th century, the polar ice sheet started getting faster (and especially faster than expected) to melt due to global warming. Thus the use of the otherwise covered by permanent ice sea for commercial and research purposes seemed to be not far. Some states attacked their old claims on again or developed new proposals for the division of the Arctic region. The increasingly concrete details of any forthcoming global shortage of raw materials led to an intensification of work on such projects: It is believed that up to 25 % of the global oil and natural gas supplies could be stored under the Arctic seabed. Also, is expected to tin, manganese, gold, nickel, lead, platinum and diamonds deposits. Of economic importance are also the fishery in the Arctic.

Current Development

According to the Convention, states have after the ratification of the treaty ten years' time to appeal claims for an extended continental shelf. Based on that, should the five countries bordering the Arctic Ocean - Canada, Denmark, Norway, the Russian Federation and the United States - their claims to 2013, 2014, 2006 and 2007 raise. As the United States have not yet confirmed the Convention, the original date of the contract is not fixed.

Claims on extended continental shelf - if they are legitimate - give the applicant states special rights to the seabed and the natural resources beneath the floor. Valid claims will not have the exclusive economic zone (EEZ ) of the State extend, because the EEZ is created only by the drawing of a 200 -mile line through the territorial sea baselines as starting points. Then emphasis is placed because press articles bring the facts often confused. They state that claims to extended continental shelf wide the EEZ of a State from, so that the state gets special rights not only to the seabed and the natural resources below which, but also to resources in the water column.

Russia

On 20 December 2001 Russia formally applied to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf ( CLCS ) in accordance with the Convention (Art. 76 sentence 8) establishing new external borders of the Russian continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles wide exclusive economic zone, but within the Russian Arctic sector. The hereby claimed by Russia territory with an area of ​​approximately 1.2 million square kilometers, which represents major part of the Arctic including the North Pole

The request was based, among other things, that both the Lomonosov and the Mendeleev Ridge are submarine continuations of the Eurasian landmass. 2002 the request from the United Nations was neither accepted nor rejected; Instead, further investigation was recommended. This research will be carried out in the years 2007 and 2008 as part of the Russian contribution to the International Polar Year 4. Through the Arktika 2007 expedition called to structure and origin of the earth's crust in the Arctic near Eurasia, including through research on Mendeleev, the Lomonosov and Alpha back on, cleared and the suspected link to be confirmed for Siberian shelf. A group of 50 Russian scientists came up with the ship Russia to the conclusion that at least the Lomonosov Ridge is connected to the Russian Federation associated land mass. Under the seabed of the areas in question could be stored according to information from the scientists up to ten billion tons of oil and gas. Russian President Vladimir Putin took this message to remind of the application of 2001.

Beginning of August 2007 appeared two Russian submarines of type I to a depth of 4261 meters below the sea and sat on the geographic North Pole, a Russian flag in the ground. While the Canadian government criticized the Russian actions sharp, the Danish government sees this only as a " meaningless stunt for the media." The spokesman of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Peter Taksøe -Jensen, said: "We take it very calmly and with humor. For the legal enforcement of international law claims has not the slightest importance. "Putin delivered a speech on 3 May 2007 on the nuclear icebreaker 50 Let Pobedy, in which he urged to greater efforts to the " strategic, economic, scientific and conservation interests " of Russia to protect the Arctic.

Canada

A special situation, the portion of the Arctic Ocean to the Canadian coast and the Canadian -Arctic Archipelago dar. Although these waters are actually Canadian partly under international law of the sea, do not recognize the United States, European Union and some other countries to the Canadian sovereignty, but treat them as international waters. So repeatedly American submarines were performed by Canadian territory close to the islands past, without prior request for permission to the government.

Although the affected waters, including the Northwest Passage counts, due to the extensive glaciation over nine months of the year, currently not very attractive for civilian and military shipping, but you should have to stop global warming, the Northwest Passage would for many ships a significant shortcut - up to 7000 nautical miles - compared to driving on the toll Central American Panama Canal represent. But Canada's efforts to this part of the country with such high economic potential were not very intense over time. Although the Arctic accounts for 40 percent of the land mass of the state and is also a huge source of raw materials, the Canadian government is only now beginning to see that the property must be secured against other states. A defense against the worst case enemy taking possession would currently be impossible; only the Coast Guard has a total of six heavy icebreaker, on the mainland just a few soldiers are stationed.

In July 2007, the Canadian government has taken the decision to let build six to eight patrol vessels to secure the claims can, but this should only be sufficient deterrence. There are also plans to build a deep-sea military port in Resolute Bay, which until now are still vague. Prime Minister Stephen Harper also backed away from his campaign promise to keep the Northwest Passage all year round by icebreakers Marine navigable.

Denmark

Denmark confirmed the UNCLOS which his claim to the extended continental shelf on November 16, 2004. Danish autonomous territory Greenland is geographically the North Pole, with its coastline on the next. Denmark claims that the area occupied by Russia Lomonosov Ridge in truth was a continuation of the island of Greenland. The Danish research in this field began with the expedition Lorita -1 in the spring of 2006. They will be continued within the framework of the International Polar Year in August 2007 with the company LOMROG. On August 12, 2007, went 40 scientists, including ten from Denmark, on board the Swedish icebreaker Oden, which expired from Tromsø to the north pole. While the Danish measurements should occupy the Copenhagen view that the continental shelf is connected to the pole with the island of Greenland, the Swedish participants study the climate history of the Arctic on the expedition. The attachment of a Russian flag under the North Pole called the Danish Science Minister Helge Sander as a " provocation." However, taking part in the expedition, the Russian nuclear icebreaker 50 Let Pobedy ( 50th Anniversary of Victory) part.

USA

For the U.S. government possible territorial gains play through the riparian status of the northernmost state of Alaska, a subordinate role because it would fall by the comparatively short coastline in all its procedures only a small area. The focus of the U.S. Arctic policy is rather directed to the Northeast and the Northwest Passage. These waters should be internationalized as far as possible the government under Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, according to open an unobstructed as possible navigation and more useful to them. Thus, they encountered resistance in Canada, Russia and the U.S. Senate, which rejected ratification of UNCLOS.

Norway

Norway held initially largely from discussions on the status of the area around the North Pole out. It focused rather on his dispute with Russia over part of the Barents Sea and the status of Spitsbergen.

On 27 November 2006 Norway handed but also an application to the CLCS one, proposed in the to expand the Norwegian 200 -mile zone in three areas of the North-East Atlantic and the Arctic Ocean: the Loophole in the Barents Sea, the western Nansen basin as well as the so-called " Banana Hole" in the Norwegian Sea. It is noted that a further request may be submitted concerning the extension of the continental shelf in other areas.

European Union

The European Union has begun to define their own interests in the Arctic. It refers particularly to the importance of merchant shipping in ice-free areas and hopes " greater opportunities for participation of the European Commission on the work of the Arctic Council by becoming a permanent observer ".

Sector solution

Canada as well as some politicians and scientists in Russia demand not to treat the Arctic under the Convention as an international waters, but they fully divide into national sectors, like it has already been proposed in the early 20th century. With it, the Arctic would be divided in angles that would run from the North Pole along the longitudes to the westernmost and easternmost points of the northern coasts of the littoral states.

Already today, there are various conflicts between states who argue after Seerechtstheorie and Canada and Russia on the other. Thus, Russia and Norway fought to 2010 over a portion of the Barents Sea

Hans Island

The dispute between Canada and Denmark over Hans Island in the Nares Strait is only provisionally settled. 1984, 1988, 1995 and 2003 Danish flags were hoisted on the islet. The Canadian government protested strongly opposed to these activities. In July 2005, finally visited the island, the then Canadian Defence Minister Bill Graham during a trip through the Arctic unannounced. This has a new diplomatic dispute between the two governments initiated, which was, however, settled in September of the same year. Canada claimed the area as the entire island was on the Canadian side of the demarcation line for cards that had been used in the determination of coordinates of the islands. However, federal officials checked a recent satellite imagery of July 2007 and confessed that the line runs approximately across the middle of the island. Since then, the island's territorial status is disputed. Claims to fishing grounds and future access to the Northwest Passage are also drawing on the game.

Beaufort Sea

There is a dispute over a wedge-shaped piece of the boundary in the Beaufort Sea between the Yukon Territory and the U.S. state of Alaska. According to Canada's maritime boundaries of the land border to follow. From a U.S. perspective, the maritime boundary should extend along a line that is equidistant from the coasts of both nations. The disputed area is rich in hydrocarbon reserves. The U.S. already hired eight pieces of the seabed, to search for oil reserves and this may promote. Canada protested diplomatically against it. So far, no agreement has been made because, although the U.S. signed the Convention, they did not agree. Once the contract is ratified, this matter will probably clarified in court.

On 20 August 2009, the U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke announced a moratorium on fishing in the Beaufort Sea north of Alaska, including the disputed waters. After Randy Boswell of Canada.com the disputed territory extends over a 21,436 -square-mile section of the Beaufort Sea. Canada did in April 2009, a letter of protest to the United States written as these published its plans for the moratorium.

Northwest Passage

The legal status of the Northwest Passage is also controversial. Canada considers it part of its internal waters in accordance with the UNCLOS. The United States and other seafaring nations view it as an international strait, that is, foreign vessels have the right of transit. After such rules Canada would have the right fishing and environmental regulations to decide further control and smuggling laws, but Canada had no right to close the passage. In addition, the accredited environmental protection regulations in the Convention are not as strict as when the Northwest Passage would include the internal waters of Canada.

The United States reject a sector breakdown, but have not ratified the UNCLOS.

Other policy issues

In view of further open issues concerning the political status of the Arctic, the Arctic Council was established in 1996. In contrast, the Euro - Arctic Barents Established in 1993, Council has little significance, as the U.S. and Canada are represented here only as an observer. In addition to the territorial- questions of international law, especially the environmental policy remains a contentious issue. Canada has adopted specific environmental laws for its Arctic territories. For the other countries similar laws are largely absent. Will also discuss an extension of the Sea Convention to include provisions to protect the environment and to fish for the international Arctic waters, which could then be monitored by the International Maritime Organization of the United Nations or by the Arctic Council. Also sea rescue in Arctic waters is not regulated legally.